Sunday, December 9, 2012 - 8:00pm
Unfold Ordinary Mind
Ellery Eskelin, tenor saxophone
Rob Sudduth, tenor saxophone
Nels Cline, guitar
Ben Goldberg, contra alto clarinet
Ches Smith, drums
Ars Nova Workshop is pleased to announce the Philadelphia debut of Unfold Ordinary Mind, the new quintet led by Ben Goldberg, featuring Ellery Eskelin, Rob Sudduth, Nels Cline and Ches Smith.
The clarinetist and composer Ben Goldberg, a former student of Steve Lacy and Joe Lovano, has been pulling from the jazz, folk and Klezmer traditions for many years, always managing to discover something uniquely his own. He has worked with Zeena Parkins, Vijay Iyer, Myra Melford, and John Zorn, among others, and is the leader of several celebrated ensembles, including Tin Hat, the New Klezmer Trio and the Ben Goldberg Quintet. Tin Hat’s most recent release, The Rain is a Handsome Animal, is a 17-song cycle inspired by the American poet E.E. Cummings, and Goldberg’s Orphic Machine premiered its Allen Grossman-inspired pieces this year at the Jewish Music Festival.
After Orphic Machine’s debut, Goldberg got the idea for a quintet in which his Eb contra alto clarinet would take the place of a bass player. So he invited the tenor saxophonists Ellery Eskelin and Rob Sudduth, the guitarist Nels Cline (of Wilco fame) and the drummer Ches Smith to Bunker Studio, in Williamsburg, Brooklyn. After a few hours of rehearsal, not only was Unfold Ordinary Mind born, but the group also recorded its first album; this eponymous debut will be released in January by Goldberg’s label, BAG Productions. About the music, Goldberg says it’s “raw, dire, and to the point.” Tonight the band makes its Philadelphia debut.
Ars Nova Workshop is a Philadelphia nonprofit jazz and experimental music presenting organization. As a facilitator between artists and their audiences, Ars Nova Workshop works to inform, inspire and challenge listeners in order to elevate the role of jazz, improvisation and experimental music in contemporary culture.